


don't need to know how the flowers grow

by ODed_on_jingle_jangle



Category: My Candy Love
Genre: Flirting, Fluff and Crack, Illnesses, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, MCL Rarepair Week, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-23 00:24:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20000935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ODed_on_jingle_jangle/pseuds/ODed_on_jingle_jangle
Summary: He smells nice too, Jade notices, standing this close. Sort of spicy-sweet, like cinnamon gum. For a moment Jade thinks it’s his attraction to Castiel that’s making it feel like his skin is scorching under his touch. Then his brain yanks his heart out of its stupid, gay starstruck stupor and back to reality.





	don't need to know how the flowers grow

**Author's Note:**

> So I guess the rarepair week is over, but I'm that bitch who's late to everything anyway and this is no exception. Also Lysander is dead in this cause while no, I don't play anymore, pretty everybody who does thinks it's BS that he and Castiel just up and don't interact anymore and from what I do remember, like, hard agree. And because I'm also that bitch who's got be angsty 24/7, so booyah, dead exes!
> 
> [](http://tinypic.com?ref=20acrqw)  
> 

Jade is watering the aloe when an unusually notable customer shuffles into the apothecary, Castiel of Crowstorm. Something of a low-key celebrity to break up the routine of the day. In truth, Jade maybe, sort of knew him by association when he was kid, but that’s probably not something Castiel remembers at all. He supposes it doesn’t matter much anyway. A customer is a customer after all, celebrity status or not. 

“Afternoon,” he chirps in greeting. “Can I help you?”

“Hopefully,” Castiel huffs, wincing as he gives a little head shake. “I don’t really believe in this junk, but a friend of friend who’s into all this witchy stuff swears by it and I’m desperate.”

Jade lifts a brow, feels the corner of his mouth quirk up. “Witchy stuff?”

Castiel waves his hand. “You know, plant potions, kale cleanse mumbo jumbo.”

Jade chuckles, propping his elbows on the counter. “So if you don’t believe in it, why are you here?”

“Like I said, I’m desperate. I’ve got a concert in an hour and my throat is killing me. Came on crazy fast and I don’t have a whole lot of options.”

And now that he’s said that, Jade realizes that he does sound kind of rough. Sandpapery syllables, words sort of whittling out at the end.

“This close to curtain, I’d think most artists just lip synch or cancel.”

A stubborn spark lights up his eyes.

“Are you kidding?” he scoffs. “Posers who do that aren’t _real_ artists.”

Jade finds himself smiling. “Okay, okay, so mad respect…but I’m not the herbalist. Unless you know what it is you want, I don’t really know what to give you.”

“Seriously?” he groans, frustration seemingly more directed at the situation than Jade, exactly. “But you work here, right? You gotta know something, man.”

“Well…ah, alright. I might know a couple things. Mind if I take a look?”

Castiel glances around and gives a shrug, stepping back. “Sure.”

So Jade sidles around the counter and presses his hands under Castiel’s jaw, carefully probing the way Eweleïn showed him to. It’s the first time he’s ever done this too a customer though, let alone one who’s this hot. And god, is Castiel hot.

He was good looking in high school but early adulthood has sharpened the edges of his features. He’s filled out some more, stands taller, and his style has grown up with him. He really owns the rockstar look now, doesn’t look as try-hard as he did at sixteen when Jade would glance up from pruning the plants to see him gagging in the courtyard on cigarettes he didn’t really know how to smoke.

He smells nice too, Jade notices, standing this close. Sort of spicy-sweet, like cinnamon gum. For a moment Jade thinks it’s his attraction to Castiel that’s making it feel like his skin is scorching under his touch. Then his brain yanks his heart out of its stupid, gay starstruck stupor and back to reality.

“Oh, man, you’ve got a fever…”

“Fun.”

“And your lymph nodes are swollen, uh, open up for a sec.”

Castiel complies and Jade’s concern spikes to alarm. His tonsils are huge, bloated like overinflated beach balls about to burst. Glaring firetruck red and streaked with sickly patches of white.

“Ooh, wow. Uh, okay, so I do believe in this stuff you call junk. The plant potions and kale cleanse mumble jumbo?” Jade drops his hands, grimacing. “Yeah, I believe in all that and I’m still telling you to see a doctor. It’s bad, you need antibiotics.”

Castiel pauses, humming an unhappy sound as he reaches back to adjust his hair tie. Jade watches, tracing the tattoos on his arms and hoping he doesn’t look as enticed as he feels.

“Again, little short on time here,” he says eventually. “Think you can hook me up with something just to get me through the concert and I’ll do all that tomorrow?”

“…how are you standing up right now?” Jade asks, because he vividly remembers the misery that was his own bout of strep last year, not just the pain like scorpions nesting in the tender meat of his throat, but the pounding headaches and the body aches that made his legs feel heavy as concrete blocks.

Castiel barks out a laugh he flinches from and flashes Jade a wolfish grin.

“Espresso and energy drink cocktail.”

Jade gapes.

“On the rocks,” he adds with a wink.

And all Jade can think is that it’s infinitely unfair for this guy to be this sexy while sick.

“I can get you some teas that should help,” he says, stepping back and slinking along the shelves. “They’re not going to be a cure-all, though.”

“Do they taste gross?” Castiel raises a brow.

Jade finds the tins of herbal blends he was looking for, breathing a laugh as he strolls back behind the counter.

“Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“Fair enough.” Castiel crosses his arms. “So is it just the fever playing tricks on me, or have we met before?”

Jade stops, lagging like an overloaded phone. This isn’t real. Castiel can’t possibly remember him. No way would this guy, sexy-when-he’s-sick, singer-in-a-band, popular punk guy remember him. But he’s looking expectant like he does, and Jade swallows as his heart flutters and his lips stretch wide.

“Uh, yeah. I went to a different school, but I was in the gardening club at yours.”

“Ah, that’s right. My friend had a crush on you.”

“I remember you too,” Jade continues. “From then, I mean. Not from Crowstorm. You were in a different band then, and the other guy was the singer. Lysander, right? We didn’t talk much, but he’d hang out in the garden sometimes, writing your songs.”

Castiel’s expression changes, sorrow swallowing the devil may care demeanor and jaw tightening. Damn it. Jade just stepped on a landmine.

“Uh-oh. Bad band breakup?” he asks nervously, absently thinking that the question could be a tongue twister in one of those activity books for kids. Bad band breakup. Say that five times fast.

Castiel shakes his head. “He died. Hit-and-run a few months before graduation.”

“Shit,” Jade gasps, soaking in the shock of the news.

It’s not like he knew Lysander well or anything. Just a casual conversation here and there, they were barely acquaintances. But it’s still jarring to realize that somebody he talked to died. Died young and violently, at that.

“I’m sorry,” he says next, low and sincere.

“He’s still with me,” Castiel murmurs, looking at the floor as his fingers stroke the feathers inked into his forearm. “On my skin and when I sing. Sure as hell would rather have him next to me, though.”

Jade nods solemnly, ringing up the tea and bagging the tea. Empty words don’t ease grief, and so he offers none. Castiel seems to appreciate the moment of quiet before he fishes in his pocket and digs out his wallet.

He pulls out a plastic card and Jade shakes his head.

“Sorry, cash only.”

“Really?” Castiel sucks his lip between his teeth. “Shit. I don’t have any on me.”

“You know what? It’s on the house.” Jade types in the payment and makes a mental note to get his own wallet before he clocks out.

“I appreciate it. So here’s this, for you and your girlfriend.” Castiel grins and thumbs something else out of his wallet, slapping it down on the counter. Two tickets to tonight’s concert.

“Thanks! I, uh, don’t have a girlfriend though.”

“No?” Castiel arches a brow, smirks almost teasingly.

“Nah.” Jade licks his lips and takes a chance. “Honestly, girlfriends aren’t really my style.”

Castiel bobs his head and swipes the other ticket off the counter. He puts it away and replaces it with something else, a shorter but thicker laminated printout. It’s a backstage pass.

“In that case, you can have this instead.”

Jade tries to be suave even though he can feel his face bloom with the heat of a blush, his heartbeat quickening and his palms getting sweaty. He tries to say something, anything, something cool, or flirty, or even just a thank you. But his tongue suddenly won’t work.

Castiel pops his lips as he takes his tea and turns around, headed to the door.

“F-Feel better,” Jade finally manages, grinning like a fool.

Castiel tosses a wink over his shoulder and ducks out.

**Author's Note:**

> Apparently I get all my titles from songs now, fml.


End file.
